lambodiecast

I already have a large collection of 1/18 scale Lamborghini Miura models made by Kyosho, but when they announced a rather special model I put in a pre-order quickly ... the silver metallic Lamborghini Miura SVJ would be a replica of the one and only #4860 ordered by Hubert Hahne back in the days.

In the end it took so long for Kyosho to finally produce it I actually cancelled my order and decided to wait it out and use the down payment for another model ... when this silver Miura SVJ did become available I didn't jump on it right away, don't know why but I got other models instead ... until I found one for a nice price when I visited an Italian car show in the Netherlands ... avoiding shipping costs along the way.

To be honest I consider the Lamborghini Miura one of the most beautiful cars ever made, so I might be a little less objective when it comes to models of this amazing car from the Sixties, my favorite edition being the Miura SV with her wide rear wheels and smooth headlight surrounds ... naturally the impressive Miura Jota and the custom order SVR model are even more sought after, the Jota was a one of kind that was lost in an accident only the be recreated by an enthusiast in the UK while the Miura SVR was in fact a custom made model rolling on wide BBS wheels and showing a massive roof mounted wing.

But there is yet another custom ordered series of Miura models ... these are the Miura SVJ models, trying to replicate the Jota more or less but with a less wild look than the Miura SVR ... and Miura number 4860 was one of these special order Miura SVJ units featuring fixed headlights, open grilles in the front hood, air vents behind the front wheels ... and behind the rear wheels. Add a different exhaust system and some engine tuning and you have a street car that looks like a race car ... especially if you look at the multitude of rivets all over the body.

Most of these Miura SVJ also received some kind of front spoiler to keep the nose down at high speeds, in fact the factory tuned the suspension on the Miura to have a 'nose down' stance for the same reason, Miura #4860 didn't get the corner 'winglets' like the Jota and some other SVJ but instead a black fin running the entire width from left to right was installed on the front hood. Now from the high angle views it seems Miura #4860 did not have the usual air-conditioning system installed like we see on the regular Miura SV.

Another difference are the exterior rear view mirrors, some Miura didn't have any, the Miura SV seen here had the small pods on the front hood while the silver Miura SVJ has a black unit on the driver side only ... black which blends in perfectly with the black window surrounds, they would be chrome on factory standard Miura SV, but I have to admit the black looks really good on this silver Miura SVJ.

Naturally a Lamborghini Miura SVJ didn't come with a regular V12 engine, the Kyosho model shows a highly customized engine with many anodized parts and open funnels on the carburetors ... if all this is genuine to the real car I'm not sure, but it does look rather impressive.

Same went on under the front hood, the spare wheel found on the regular Miura SV has been removed while other tubes and lines have been added, keep in mind those green springs on the suspension are actually period correct, some regular Miura SV even came with this colorful detail. One more difference between Miura SV and Miura SVJ is the quick fuel filler that comes peeping through the front hood on the latter one ... would have been nice if it would actually open up, but you can't have it all I guess.

So is this new Kyosho model of the Lamborghini Miura SVJ worth adding to your collection? Well there are a few small issues you have to keep in mind with this recent production scale model ... it isn't all that perfect this time around.

From the photos on the left you can already notice the air vents that have been cut into the front hood, just behind the front wheels, doesn't fit too nicely, there is a serious 'hole' between the vent and the hood part itself ... something I never noticed on the Miura SVR however.

On my specific model the engine cover seems to catch something, preventing it to close perfectly ... none of my other 1/18 Miura models from Kyosho have this issue, and to make it even worse ... take a closer look at the louvers on the engine cover.

On the newer Miura SVJ they don't even align evenly, on the older Miura SV the black louvers are perfectly aligned, on the Miura SVJ it looks like a mess ... on the positive side however the exhausts on the Miura SVJ not being inside a grille is in fact correct, the owner of the real car had the lower grille removed at some point, also the silver grey louvers are right too, at first these were black, but again the owner had them repainted later on.

But by far the biggest issue for me on this Miura SVJ model are the glue stains in the engine compartment ... this is considered to be a high end scale model, not a regular diecast that sells for €25 or something ... I paid €100 for mine and some are listed even more expensive ... and then you see glue stains when you open the box?!

No I'm always as positive as can be, I'm not the one to complain too much when a detail isn't right compared to the real car, or when something isn't perfectly rendered in scale ... but I do draw the line at glue stains ... that just shouldn't happen.

Bottom line: I don't regret buying this silver metallic Lamborghini Miura SVJ from Kyosho, after all it represents a very special car in the history of Automobili Lamborghini SpA, and I just love the Miura range ... I was just a little disappointed when I opened the box and took a closer look at the car ... still I have put it in my display case ... with doors and hoods closed it looks absolutely amazing next to the silver metallic Miura SV I already owned.

So please Kyosho ... take a little more time on quality control next time, I'm sure this one was just a temporary glitch.

our RATING

Overall rating

8/10

Original price : € 100